Prep Soccer Player’s Age Is Questioned

Francisco Islas, leading scorer for the top-ranked Santa Ana Valley soccer team, might miss the rest of the season, pending a claim by Orange High that Islas is too old to play high school soccer.

Santa Ana Valley Coach Adnan Bayati said Orange High has made a complaint to the Southern Section and the Santa Ana Valley administration that Islas was born in July 1974, which would make him 19 years old.

Bayati said Islas will soon produce a birth certificate from his native country, Mexico, showing that he was born in July 1976.